Disgruntled staffer changed the State Department's website to state Trump's term ended 9 days early: Sources

A disgruntled employee at the State Department changed the biographies of President Donald Trump and Vice President Pence, to state that their term was ending on Monday - nine days before the inauguration of President-elect Biden.

As reported by BuzzFeed News, the changes to the State Department's website came only a few days after the President incited an insurrection of Trump supporters in the Capitol building; prompting Democrats to appeal the Vice President to invoke Article 25 and remove Trump from office.

On the State Department website, the President's biography was changed to "Donald J. Trump's term ended on 2021-01-11 19:49:00,” while the vice president’s biography was edited to “Michael R. Pence's term ended on 2021-01-11 19:44:22".

The time-stamp on President Trump's biography page was changed multiple times, until it was eventually removed around 3:50 (EST), replaced with an error stating "We’re sorry, this site is currently experiencing technical difficulties. Please try again in a few moments".

It was also reported that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has ordered an internal investigation into the matter, beginning with interns and employees at the State Department, with sources stating that the State Department's website is "a closed system that is nearly impossible to hack".